VholdR ContourHD wearable camcorder

July 13, 2010

Transcript

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>> What's up everybody? This is Antuan Goodwin giving you your First Look at the Contour HD wearable camcorder. The Contour HD is a bullet-type helmet camera that fits nicely in the palm of your hand. The body is made of aluminum, keeping the overall weight down to 4.3 ounces, which is important for a device that's made to be strapped to your head. Up front, we've got the 135-degree wide-angle lens, which is flanked by a pair of laser pointers. That's right, folks, it shoots fricken' laser beams. The entire lens assembly can be rotated by 192 degrees to accommodate different mounting positions. And the lasers let you know where the lens is pointed and how it's oriented while the camera is actually attached to your head, bike, or car, which is actually more useful than a viewfinder, which you can't actually see when it's strapped to you head. The back of the unit is where you'll find a rubber cap that houses the battery and memory card indicator lights, as well as the power button. And behind that cap are a microSD card slot, the rechargeable lithium ion battery, a mini USB port, and the HD/SD switch. The unit ships with a rechargeable lithium ion battery, which gets its juice through that micro USB port, a two-gigabyte microSD card, and a USB cable. Connecting the Contour HD to a PC or a Mac using the USB cable allows users to download their videos and charge the battery. No fumbling with double A's or triple A's here. Estimated battery life of a full charge is about three hours, and recharging takes about four hours. Using the Contour HD couldn't be easier. Just power the unit on, slide the huge record switch forward, and then you're done. When you're done, just slide the record switch back. There are no odd menus or tiny LCD screens to deal with, like the competition. The Contour HD also ships with a pair of adhesive flat surface mounts and a goggle strap. But a suction cup windshield mount adaptor is also available for automotive enthusiasts, as well as tripod mount for our more seasoned videographers. Now, the Contour HD finds itself going head up with the likes of the Go Pro Hero and the ATC 5K action cameral. And while the HD isn't as rugged as either of these units, as it's not actually submersible, it is the only unit in the bunch that can record at 1280 by 720P hi-def. The other units only shoot VGA. Even the Contour HD's 854 by 480 pixel SD setting is higher than that. Plus, it's idiot-proof control scheme makes the Contour HD easier to use to boot, which is why we've decided to give the Contour HD our Editor's Choice Award. I'm Antuan Goodwin, and we've been looking at the Contour HD wearable camcorder.
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